“But as the saying goes, the struggle continues. Workers have also used other methods to achieve better pay, benefits and working conditions. Workplace standards boards in right to work states have enabled essential workers to have a voice in setting policies that affect them, such as in Houston, Texas. Some worker-led organizations have opted for solidarity organizing instead of collective bargaining, such as Brandworkers in New York City. Others, such as Worker’s Justice Project, have organized immigrant gig workers for better working conditions and more control over delivery apps.

And rural worker centers like the Coalition of Immokalee Workers and Migrant Justice organize farmworkers who have been historically excluded from NLRA provisions. They have catalyzed a movement for Worker-Driven Social Responsibility, where corporate and institutional buyers sign legally binding agreements that ensure better pay and safety standards for farmworkers. The connective tissues here is the collective agency of working people, coming together to forge a better life.”